Nearly a year ago, the Liberty stars were a shell of themselves against the Aces and couldn’t hang on to earn their first WNBA title.
Sabrina Ionescu averaged only 9.8 points on 31-percent shooting across the four WNBA Finals games — a huge dip from her 17-point season average.
Nevertheless, the Liberty have seen a different facilitator in Ionescu a year later for the 2024 playoffs — one who drives to the rim, uses a floater and finds more shots inside the paint than out.
The newfound versatility of the 2020 No. 1-overall pick will be crucial to the early semifinal meeting with the Aces starting on Sunday in the best-of-five series.
Since the beginning of the season, the Liberty wanted to see Ionescu go downhill more often, but nevertheless, she had to change her game due to her usual 3-point dagger becoming inconsistent.
This year, Ionescu’s percentage from beyond the arc has fallen by 11.6 percent and sits at a low 33.3 percent.
Last year’s 44.8 percentage was a league record for WNBA players with at least 200 attempted 3-pointers in a season.
“I think when you’re one-dimensional, it’s obviously a lot easier to guard,” Ionescu said after Liberty practice on Saturday. “Obviously this offseason, I worked really hard on just continuing to get really explosive, get back to driving, using my body, getting contact, getting into the paint and just getting some easy looks at the basket, which opens up the floor for everyone else.”
Despite her struggles at the end of the regular season, shooting just 7-for-37 from the field in the final three games, Ionescu has come alive in the playoffs.
She had a playoff career-high 36 points in Game 2 to lead the sweep of the Dream, in which 21 of those points were inside the paint.
“She’s able to affect the game in so many different ways and obviously teams know they want to run her off the line,” Jonquel Jones said. “They don’t want to let her get easy 3-point shots. She’s evolving. She’s allowing herself to be versatile. We need that from her. We need her to find different ways to impact the game.”
Ionescu scored 10 of her 11 points in the third quarter from inside, including a 3-point play on a layup with two defenders crashing on her to tie the game off a screen from Jones at the top of the key.
The play before, she scored another layup after receiving a high five from film producer and Brooklyn native Spike Lee before throwing in the inbound pass.
“I felt like New York was just injected into my veins,” Ionescu said of the moment after the game.
Within 10 feet or closer to the rim, Ionescu has taken 194 shots so far this year — 68 more than she did in 2023.
In doing so, she has drawn more fouls and opened up opportunities for her teammates.
Her 3-point shooting has started to improve in the playoffs as well, at 44 percent through two games.
“I think it’s just maturity as a young player,” coach Sandy Brondello said. “This year, we saw how she evolved as a playmaker and with the ball more in her hands. I think at first step, she really worked on that. You saw her floating ability and how she gets to the rim, takes contact. She just got better.”
Ionescu’s defense has also improved, ranking No. 11 in defensive rating across the league — an improvement from 18th in 2023.
At Liberty practice on Saturday, she was trusted to guard the player representing Aces star Jackie Young, as the starting five ran plays against a scout team of Liberty reserves.
Young averaged 18.5 points and proved dominant in the backcourt with Chelsea Gray and Kelsey Plum during the finals in 2023. Brondello said Ionescu had the willingness to take on the task.
“I think she’s one of the smartest IQ players on [defense] out there,” Brondello said. “And you have to remember that she came from a program that played zone. So, we had to keep building her up and I think the way that she’s committed to it, that’s a part of it.”
Ionescu has found herself peaking at the right time, going into Sunday with confidence, which will be paramount for the Liberty’s chances to earn another title shot.
